Introduction: The goal of this report is to provide the reader with a general understanding of the evolution, current stage of development and future prospects of capital markets in selected East Asian economies. The first section provides an overview of the issues discussed in this study and gives a general assessment on the level of development of securities markets in the region. Each of the following sections looks at capital market development in five major developing countries, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Each of these country specific sections is organized in three parts. The first part provides the reader with a brief overview of the country's recent economic performance and gives an historical account of the development of the domestic equity and bond markets. The second part presents
information on market size and structure, trading statistics, clearing and settlement procedures, and the types of protection available to shareholders and bondholders and relevant capital market regulation. Finally, the third part profiles the main market participants in each country, with particular focus on the issuers, buyers and underwriters of securities.